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It Is Him wrote:I like this approach Seibertron is taking with news posts. More editorials. More interviews. I like it. Keep it up!

We've always had interviews and roundups (well, since Blurrz, Burn and I worked on them), but life got in the way for a bit! Will's editorials are a great idea, I agree, and much needed freshness.

And here it is, the final preview for mini-series Transformers Drift: Empire of Stone by IDW Publishing. What do you think will happen, what will Gigatron do, how far will Hellbat go, and how many more times will Drift remind us of his past? Find out below, read our interview with series writer Shane McCarthy here, and head back here tomorrow for the Seibertron.com review!

Transformers: Drift—Empire of Stone #4 (of 4)
Shane McCarthy (w) • Guido Guidi (a & c)
FINAL FATE! This is it—DRIFT and RATCHET show down against the STONE ARMY! Will DRIFT rejoin the AUTOBOTS—or forge a new fate in the farthest reaches of the galaxy?
FC • 32 pages • $3.99

Bullet points:
This issue’s fallout will impact TRANSFORMERS comics for years to come!
Ties in directly MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE!

Is it wrong that I don't want either Gigatron or hellbat to die? Gigatron could make for an interesting rival to Galvatron's leadership down the line. Hellbat could serve as an introduction for the rest of the breastforce into the IDW verse, and we need liokaiser.

ZeroWolf wrote:Is it wrong that I don't want either Gigatron or hellbat to die? Gigatron could make for an interesting rival to Galvatron's leadership down the line. Hellbat could serve as an introduction for the rest of the breastforce into the IDW verse, and we need liokaiser.

That's the funny thing about Transformers villains. There are some real bastards our heroes are up against, but you don't want to see them die and have no more chances to be bastards. Sure, you usually want them to lose, but it would feel like a waste to outright kill them.

That said, Japanese characters have not had a good survival rate in the two ongoings, so it's not looking good statistically.

"All bluster and bravado." How funny that McCarthy gives us such a succinct summation of the entire series.

I've not had much experience with his writing beyond this mini, but I know it's pretty widely panned among a good portion of the fandom. Now I can see why. Drift has no need to introduce and re-introduce himself in EVERY FREAKING ISSUE. "I'm Drift. I used to be a Decepticon. Then I was an Autobot. Now, I'm neither." Talk about Bluster. And making him talk like a badass or a wiseass all the time? There's your bravado right there. It just seems so forced and makes me roll my eyes. I can't take anything in this series seriously. Maybe I'm just too used to the great writing in MTME. Coherent plot threads, character development in spades..... In McCarthy's hands, it doesn't seem like Drift has actually learned anything or become any different. If he does come back to MTME, I can only hope Roberts can fix the damage. If not, I'm not attached to Drift, so it won't be a big loss.

Bounti76 wrote:"All bluster and bravado." How funny that McCarthy gives us such a succinct summation of the entire series.

I've not had much experience with his writing beyond this mini, but I know it's pretty widely panned among a good portion of the fandom. Now I can see why. Drift has no need to introduce and re-introduce himself in EVERY FREAKING ISSUE. "I'm Drift. I used to be a Decepticon. Then I was an Autobot. Now, I'm neither." Talk about Bluster. And making him talk like a badass or a wiseass all the time? There's your bravado right there. It just seems so forced and makes me roll my eyes. I can't take anything in this series seriously. Maybe I'm just too used to the great writing in MTME. Coherent plot threads, character development in spades..... In McCarthy's hands, it doesn't seem like Drift has actually learned anything or become any different. If he does come back to MTME, I can only hope Roberts can fix the damage. If not, I'm not attached to Drift, so it won't be a big loss.

I don't mind it, then again I'm a fan of the Flash and Arrow on the CW so it reminds me of that in a way.

That_Guy wrote:I don't mind it, then again I'm a fan of the Flash and Arrow on the CW so it reminds me of that in a way.

More power to you if you do. I don't fault anyone for liking it, I just personally can't stand it-to me, McCarthy's writing is so heavy-handed and doesn't do anything to advance a character's growth, it just tries to force people to accept Drift as a badass when he could do it through actions rather than the same internal dialogue over and over.

But different strokes for different folks, eh? I loved the Windblade miniseries and will subscribe to the new ongoing when it's out, because I feel Mairghread Scott has a far better grasp on writing for various characters. Hers are fleshed out and have more layers and subtlety to them.

Bounti76 wrote:"All bluster and bravado." How funny that McCarthy gives us such a succinct summation of the entire series.

I've not had much experience with his writing beyond this mini, but I know it's pretty widely panned among a good portion of the fandom. Now I can see why. Drift has no need to introduce and re-introduce himself in EVERY FREAKING ISSUE. "I'm Drift. I used to be a Decepticon. Then I was an Autobot. Now, I'm neither." Talk about Bluster. And making him talk like a badass or a wiseass all the time? There's your bravado right there. It just seems so forced and makes me roll my eyes. I can't take anything in this series seriously. Maybe I'm just too used to the great writing in MTME. Coherent plot threads, character development in spades..... In McCarthy's hands, it doesn't seem like Drift has actually learned anything or become any different. If he does come back to MTME, I can only hope Roberts can fix the damage. If not, I'm not attached to Drift, so it won't be a big loss.

I gotta agree with you. It feels like he watched a bunch of 80's action movies before he wrote this. Replace Drift with Stallone and you've got the latest Rambo.

Bounti76 wrote:

That_Guy wrote:I don't mind it, then again I'm a fan of the Flash and Arrow on the CW so it reminds me of that in a way.

More power to you if you do. I don't fault anyone for liking it, I just personally can't stand it-to me, McCarthy's writing is so heavy-handed and doesn't do anything to advance a character's growth, it just tries to force people to accept Drift as a badass when he could do it through actions rather than the same internal dialogue over and over.

But different strokes for different folks, eh? I loved the Windblade miniseries and will subscribe to the new ongoing when it's out, because I feel Mairghread Scott has a far better grasp on writing for various characters. Hers are fleshed out and have more layers and subtlety to them.

I enjoyed it as well. In all honesty did not see thag twist at the end.

That_Guy wrote:

Bounti76 wrote:

That_Guy wrote:I don't mind it, then again I'm a fan of the Flash and Arrow on the CW so it reminds me of that in a way.

More power to you if you do. I don't fault anyone for liking it, I just personally can't stand it-to me, McCarthy's writing is so heavy-handed and doesn't do anything to advance a character's growth, it just tries to force people to accept Drift as a badass when he could do it through actions rather than the same internal dialogue over and over.

But different strokes for different folks, eh? I loved the Windblade miniseries and will subscribe to the new ongoing when it's out, because I feel Mairghread Scott has a far better grasp on writing for various characters. Hers are fleshed out and have more layers and subtlety to them.

I enjoyed it as well. In all honesty did not see thag twist at the end.

Are you talking about the reveal of Chromia as the bomber?

yup, did not see that coming.

That_Guy wrote:yup, did not see that coming.

How? That got dropped on us in Windblade's opening monologue "The only one I can trust is Chromia", every time that line is used in any fiction it means that that character is the one who ends up betraying the lead.

And finally, our third preview of a newly released Transformers comic from IDW Publishing sees the character of Drift - introduced all the way back in All Hail Megatron, and become a mainstay in most of the stories since - show up in all of his Drift-centric stories, from Spotlight: Drift, to his eponymous mini-series to the Empire of Stone follow up, of which we are seeing repercussions to this day, more or less in the background (keep an eye out for that in the likes of Lost Light).

Check out the full preview below, and join the discussion in the Energon Pub discussion boards!

Transformers Drift: Origins & Empires
Shane McCarthy (w) • Alex Milne, Guido Guidi, Marcelo Ferreira (a) • Livio Ramondelli (c)
Repentant villain Drift roams the galaxy, waging a solitary war on his former allies, delivering swift justice to any Decepticons that cross his path. But with many Autobots refusing to trust him, and many Decepticons sure he's pulling a scheme, walking the straight and narrow path won't be easy, and Drift—previously known as Deadlock—must repeatedly face the consequences of his past mistakes. Collects Transformers Spotlight: Drift, Transformers: Drift #1–4, and Transformers Drift: Empire of Stone #1–4.
TPB • FC • $24.99 • 220 pages • ISBN: 978-1-68405-223-3

I didn't care about Drift until I started reading MTMTE, so I didn't read any of this. Now it's all in one nice package. I'm definitely picking this up.

I already have Emprire of Stone so I don't get why it's included in this. I don't have any of the others so I just have to figure which option is cheaper, granted I am a huge fan of paper books/comics.

Out just in time for Flame Toys Drift! Or the Wing, Drift, and Deadlock MMC are doing. Total Brand and/or Theft Awareness!

ScottyP wrote:Out just in time for Flame Toys Drift! Or the Wing, Drift, and Deadlock MMC are doing. Total Brand and/or Theft Awareness!

The Brand is bigger than us all. Which is why one can never reach True Total Brand Awareness.

Va'al wrote:

ScottyP wrote:Out just in time for Flame Toys Drift! Or the Wing, Drift, and Deadlock MMC are doing. Total Brand and/or Theft Awareness!

The Brand is bigger than us all. Which is why one can never reach True Total Brand Awareness.

:stares at MMC Wing in its glorious plastic Circle-of-Light awesomeness:

:knows deep down it's not really a Transformer:

Indeed, I shall have to find some penance worthy of The Brand.